Transition Team Update - January 22

1/22/2014

The Conference Transition Team met January 16-17, 2014, in Macon. The major emphasis in this, their fifth meeting, was to address property matters related to the transition. Mr. Warren Plowden, Conference Chancellor, was part of the discussion.

Each new district will be incorporated. Chancellor Plowden will work alongside the District Superintendents and district leadership to establish their new incorporations and provide necessary legal guidance and legal documents. He will lead webinars and meetings to prepare district leaders for the legal matters that may accompany the transition from nine districts to six.

The six new districts will be named Coastal, North Central, North East, North West, South Central and South West, as recommended in the District Study Task Force’s 2013 Annual Conference report.

Within each new district, there will be eight clusters, or groups, of churches. Once formed, these clusters will have the opportunity to creatively determine their own names.

Bishop King, in consultation with the Transition Team, added additional dates to the transition timeline:

March 1, 2014 All issues regarding district lines will be determined
May 1, 2014 District Superintendents will complete district property appraisals
July 1, 2014 Official Date of Transition
Sept. 1, 2014 Each District will have established the location of its district office and will have employed one Administrative Assistant

Also discussed during the meeting were the development and implementation of leadership training modules for use by district leadership teams. These modules will assist leaders in living out the vision and mission of the South Georgia Annual Conference.

In addition, after several months of meeting and conducting district office audits, representatives from the Enhanced Technology Team (ETT) presented the Transition Team with a report of their findings, which centered on connecting and streamlining the district offices through the use of technology. A written report regarding the ETT’s work will be shared at the 2014 Annual Conference session.

The Transition Team’s sixth listening session will be held Jan. 28 from 2 until 4 p.m. in the Turner Lodge Pioneer Room at Epworth By The Sea on St. Simons Island. All are invited and welcome to attend.

On Friday, Jan. 31, Bishop James King will announce the six district superintendents.